How To Stay Skinny For A Lifetime
I've been blessed to be skinny for almost my
entire
lifetime. I was a little chubby when I was a baby,
but since then, nothing but skin and bones.
And it's not because I didn't eat! I can count on one hand how many
people I know that can honestly eat more than me.
I understand that part of the reason I've been able to skinny is due to
my higher metabolism. I realize I've been a little more
blessed in this area than some people. And I realize that some people
have to work much harder than I do at keeping a
healthy weight.
But I want to look at this challenge from a personal
development perspective. Learning how to stay skinny for the rest of
your life can be very easy if you are just willing to use common sense
and follow a simple
plan.
I promise that if you stick to this plan, you will be able to reach a
healthy weight. And then maintain this weight for the rest of your
life. It starts with...
A Healthy Lifestyle Decision
First off, I want you to stop looking at all of the diet fads and
"miracle" drugs that are out there. All of these diets only work on a
"temporary" basis. You'll lose something at first, but once you quit
taking the pill or whatever it is you take, all the weight is going to
come back.
What we are
not
after is temporary.
The plan is to create something we will want to do for a lifetime. By
doing so, you are probably going to put off losing a couple of extra
pounds in the short term. Pills that make you go crazy and want to
clean the house all day will probably help you shed more pounds than
what I am proposing in the beginning.
But when you have this plan in place and work at it every day, you will
immediately start to feel great. Eventually you will start to look
great. And in the long term, I promise you will be healthy and on pace
to stay on this planet for a very long time.
What's the first step to this plan?...
It's A Shock: Exercise
It's no mystery, daily exercise is a must. But before you start
skimming this section or clicking the back button, give me a chance to
explain myself.
Exercise does
not
have to be rigorous or gruesome.
You don't have to workout until physical exhaustion. What you need is
something that is repeatable. Something that you are willing to do on a
daily basis.
The problem most people have when they try a new exercise program is
they sweat and pump like crazy for the first week while they are still
really committed. And then one day they take a day off and decide it's
much more enjoyable to just sit on the couch.
If your exercise program is too hard for you, you simply aren't going
to do it consistently for the long term.
What you need to do instead is take baby steps. Find some type of
exercise that you can see yourself doing often. Something you can see
yourself getting up and doing first thing in the morning every single
day from now on.
For me, this is jogging. For you, it may be walking or some other
activity. There are plenty to choose from and it doesn't matter which
one you decide.
Let's say you decide to walk daily. If so, when you first get started,
don't walk a marathon because your motivation is high. Instead, focus
your energies on building this walk into a daily routine.
You can start off by waking up and simply walking to the end of your
street and back. Start with a 3 minute walking work out. It doesn't
matter how little it is! The point is that you get started.
After you have done this
every
single day for about three weeks, then you can start to
kick it up a notch. Instead of going to the end of your street, you
can start walking to the end of the next street. Maybe that's
about 6 minutes of walking. I repeat, it doesn't have to be much. It
just has to be something consistent and repeatable.
Once you have this new habit in place, you can keep building and
building on your own momentum. Slowly add to it each week or month. Who
knows how far you can go! But that's not important right now.
Right now, you just have to get started. Make the commitment that
tomorrow when you wake up, you will do the simplest exercise. Then make
a commitment that you will do this very simple exercise every day for
the next 21 days.
You have
no idea what a
little daily exercise will do for you. Even if your tiny walk
burns just 100 calories. That's 36,500 calories over the course of a
year. And 365,000 calories over the course of ten years!
That's a lot of free cheeseburgers you can eat without any gain in
weight. But let's consider dropping the burgers and fries and learn...
How To Eat Healthy
I've already covered my
7 health tips for healthy eating.
These tips are based on 30+ years of Harvard medical research. If you
haven't yet, I highly recommend you give that a quick read some time.
Instead, what I want to talk about now is putting this healthy eating
lifestyle into practice. If you want to be able to stay skinny for a
lifetime, you absolutely
have
to eat right.
Once again, it's common sense. I realize this. But let me explain
myself...
Simple changes in your diet can make world of difference. Just have a
look at this scenario. Take two identical twins. Let them
eat, drink, and exercise the
exact
same way every day for a year. The only difference
is that one of them, in addition to what they normally drink, has a can
of soda every day for lunch.
If you went and visited these twins after the year was over, the twin
that was drinking the soda would be nearly 15 pounds heavier than the
other twin! That little can of soda every day for lunch added
up to a 15 pound weight gain over just one year!
Remember this story. But don't think about it in terms of the
twin gaining 15 pounds. Think about the twin that cut back just a
little bit, drank water for lunch instead of pop, and weighed 15 pounds
less after a year!
It's really simple stuff. Simple swaps and changes when it comes to
avoiding weight gain. You just have to take a long hard look at
yourself. Observe exactly what it is you are stuffing your face with on
a daily basis.
The eating plan is very similar to the exercise routine.
You can't wake up tomorrow and eat nothing but lettuce and drink
nothing but water. Which is similar to what most people do when they
first start a diet. Most people will go all out, hate every second of
it, and then quit a week or two afterwards. The point is that if you
hate it, you aren't going to do it consistently. And you aren't going
to be on a plan to stay skinny for a lifetime.
Instead, take baby steps. There are a variety of ways you can start,
but one easy way to get started is with breakfast. If you don't eat
breakfast, shame on you! You better get started because the whole "it's
the most important meal of the day" motto is true.
I heard a quote once, and I'm paraphrasing, "For breakfast, eat like a
king. For lunch, eat like a prince. And for dinner, eat like a servant."
How many of us do the complete opposite?
Don't get me wrong, I love nice dinners. But the point of the story is
to be sure to eat very well in the morning and during lunch. Don't skip
either one. Even when you are on a quest to stay skinny, you can't
afford to skip meals. Here's why...
When you skip meals, your body still has to have the energy it needs.
So instead of having a nice, healthy breakfast or lunch. Your body is
going to demand it gets something later. And that usually means
something of the high calorie variety like cookies and junk food.
Here's some food for thought...
The more healthy and good calories you consume, the less bad and
unhealthy calories you are going to have room for.
Start with breakfast. It's an easy place to start. Eat a big hearty
breakfast with eggs, whole wheat toast, and a little bit of orange
juice. If you are usually in a hurry in the morning, get in the habit
of having some whole wheat cereal and grabbing a banana on the
go. The point is to eat something healthy that you enjoy, and to do it
consistently.
Once your healthy breakfast is in place, you can take more baby steps.
Next time you are at a restaurant, choose
something healthy.
Whether it be a salad (not too much cheese), or perhaps order the fish
or grilled chicken (once again without cheese).
Eating healthy is not
nearly
as hard as you think it is. That's probably the
biggest misunderstanding their is. Fruits and vegetables, grilled
chicken or fish, nuts, whole grain pasta, even alcohol (in moderation
of course)!
It's a simple lifestyle decision that you have to make. If you commit to
eating right, and create an exercise you can do daily, you'll be amazed
at what slowly starts to happen to your weight.
All I ask is that you you make a commitment to the plan, and refuse to
stray from it. I know you'll be glad you did.
You'll be skinny for a lifetime and you'll feel great doing it!
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How
To
Reach A Goal Of 100 Push-Ups
The
Life Changing Benefits Of Jogging In The Morning
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